News Shields - Kaleidoscope EP

Rarely will excitable synth-pop hit you from so many directions all at once. Newcastle five-piece Shields know a thing or two about providing the odd jolt of light in a pitch black room, a sign of life in an endless stream of nothingness. Their music, showcased most effectively on this debut EP, is of the Everything Everything mould of energetic electronic-based songwriting, minus the flurry of falsetto.
DIY has an exclusive stream of Shields’ debut ‘Kaleidoscope EP’, including a cover of SBTRKT’s ‘Pharoahs’, which is available on the iTunes and CD version of the EP only. The band have given us their own take on every track, which you can read below:

Mezzanine
This is the lead track from the EP and the theme of the song is basically about conquering any personal inhibitions. It came about from a synth idea that Dave had from years ago but it was in a mental time signature so we simplified it, jammed it out in the practice room, Luke finally got to stick some slap bass in to a song and there’s even a tiny little guitar solo for Rich, so winner all round. (Stream the video below)



Miserly
The demo for ‘Miserly’ sounded quite different at first. When we came to jam it for the first time Tom had to go, so we just stuck on a basic drum loop. We found it worked so well in the track that we had to keep it. It’s a bit of a brooding disco track, the song is about greed and selfishness so that moody vibe of the track seemed to work well with the lyrics.

Turning Corners
‘Turning Corners’ came together really quickly from a demo that Rich made. The piano riff was a two guitars idea originally, but we decided to get Dave to play both at the same time on the piano instead. He struggled at first but after a few lessons with Gerry Richardson he nailed it.

Silhouette
‘Silhouette’ is supposed to be a metaphor for judging people on face value, suggesting that if you do, you’re not actually seeing things for what they truly are. The keyboard part, which was initially played on guitar was the idea that formed backbone of the song. We jammed it out from here and then stuck in an old riff idea Luke had from his previous band for the verses and we were happy.

Momentum
This tune is about adrenalin and panic. Once panic takes hold it builds up momentum and can get out of control. It’s also about taking control of that feeling and the relief that comes with it. The title came first due to the nature of the song. It is one of our most energetic live songs.

Pharaohs(SBTRKT cover)
The original is such an amazing track that we new a straight cover wouldn’t do it justice. So we decided to approach it how we would if we’d have written it from scratch. It was a chance also for John to go to town on an old 80’s Korg synth that he’d just acquired in the studio at the end of the track. Also it inspired us to have a go at making a video of us playing it wearing SBTRKT style masks.

Shields’ ‘Kaleidoscope EP’ will be available on the band’s website from 19th November. Stream the EP in full below, exclusively on DIY.